Prof. Emeritus Frisch remembered as Theatre pioneer, beloved teacher

The UW-Green Bay community received some sad news today, learning that longtime faculty member and UW-Green Bay Theatre pioneer Jack Frisch died early Tuesday (April 30) at age 84. Frisch was well known for pushing the envelope both onstage and off, shaping University and local theatre with productions that were often provocative, unconventional or avant garde. He taught an array of courses in theatre production and dramatic literature, as well as classes in American Indian Studies (now First Nations Studies) and interpersonal communication (an intro course was lovingly dubbed “Touchy-Feely 101”). Frisch also taught courses on festivals and games, and is credited with introducing students and the larger Green Bay area to “Earth Ball” — played with a six-foot-wide ball and a focus on cooperation, not competition — and other innovative games. His friend and colleague Prof. Jeff Entwistle is among those fondly remembering Frisch today — we’ve got his thoughts, vintage photos and more about Frisch’s impact in a new feature story on Frisch’s life: see story.

Frisch once directed Emmy winner ‘Monk’ at UW-Green Bay
Emmy and Golden Globe winner Tony Shalhoub of “Monk,” “Wings” and “Spy Kids” had a brief star turn with UW-Green Bay under the direction of the late Jack Frisch, who enjoyed relating the story. Shalhoub never attended the University (he went off to the Yale School of Drama) but got a start here nonetheless. In February 1973, then a senior at Green Bay East High School, he played the lead role in the new university’s production of “Captain Jack’s Revenge.” In an interview several years ago, Frisch recalls the young Shalhoub as “very good” in a “tour de force” role. Says Frisch of the teenager who stepped up to join a college and community cast, “I don’t recall whether I tried to convince him to stay around. I might have. And I should have. But I sure knew I felt it.”